Friday Randomness
Apropos of Elisabeth’s FIG challenge, where we looked for moments of joy in the (very stressful, dark, and for many of us, cold) month of February, the other day I heard a piece on NPR about searching out ‘glimmers’. The author being interviewed said that searching for glimmers is not the same as toxic positivity.
“They’re not so that you forget the challenges or look away from the suffering,” she says. “But what they do is they build capacity in your brain and body to be anchored enough in safety and connection so that you can turn toward the suffering and the challenges and not be pulled into them, not relive them, but just be able to reflect on them, be with them.”
I liked that a lot, and it felt right to me. We can’t live in a state of constant panic and stress, and we must be strong in order to be present and do the work that needs to be done.
This post isn’t really a list of glimmers, or FIGs, but is more just some randomness from around my brain.
Daylight Saving – UGH, this weekend is the beginning of Daylight Saving, and I am not looking forward to it. While I enjoy the extra light in the evening, I prefer it in the morning, so it’s going to suck to have it be dark again when I go out for my morning walk. I hate that we change our time, and wish we could just stay on Standard Time. The first few days always feel like jet lag, and there are more traffic accidents and heart attacks and so much BS. I wish we could skip it.
Ted and I watched Paradise on Hulu, and we really enjoyed it. It was gripping and kept me interested, which doesn’t always happen when I have my iPad nearby. Speaking of Hulu, did anyone watch the Academy Awards on Sunday? Hulu carried it, but we couldn’t watch, we kept getting errors. That was a blessing in disguise I guess, because then we could watch it the following night and fast forward through all of the parts we didn’t want to see, and also no commercials. Frustrating on Sunday, good on Monday. And YAY! Flow won an Oscar!
My current physical book is Ina Garten’s memoir, Be Ready when Luck Happens. I’m loving it so far. I used to watch Barefoot Contessa back when we got Food Network and before they started showing mainly travel shows and competitions. I have her first cookbook, and it has some really good recipes. I didn’t expect to like it this much, to be honest, but I like knowing the history of her time at the specialty food store, and her relationship with her husband, Jeffrey. Viewers of her cooking show know that he loves her roast chicken, but now we know why (because they ate a lot of rotisserie chicken on a 4 month trip camping in France when they were first married). Coincidentally, Ted decided to make her roast chicken recipe for dinner on Sunday, and it was delicious. The chicken was moist and delicious, and I liked it even more with some of the onions and the drippings from the bottom of the pan.
I found these postcards on Etsy and bought 100. Due to shipping, they were about $10 more than the cards I bought from Amazon. I like them, they’re cute, but of course as someone who spent 5 years of my life in Alaska, I want to know where AK and HI are. I did not make any phone calls this week, but I sent 30 postcards. Now I need to buy some more stamps (and make some phone calls). Tomorrow there are two opportunities to protest the current political shitstorm nearby. There is an International Women’s Day rally, and also a protest in front of our local Tesla dealership. Flipping a coin on which one I want to attend. If there’s a Tesla dealership near you, folks are showing up at Noon on Saturdays with their anti Musk signs. Could be fun.
Speaking of Alaska (were we?), I saw this picture on Facebook. There’s a FB page called the Sitka Bear Report, where residents of Sitka (Southeast Alaska) can report bear sightings so their friends and neighbors know when to watch out. (There are a lot of bears in Sitka) Don’t they look like a group of thugs out for trouble? Apparently they had been going through garbage cans, and then walked down to the docks and started climbing on boats, where they could have done some damage. The police came and the bears jumped in the water and swam off.
Last Friday I went and had lunch with my friend, and the restaurant has a little koi pond, and because it was such a lovely warm day, we got to see a little turtle sunning itself.
Lastly, since I know you’re wondering, I’m here to tell you that my avocado tree is doing really well. I forgot to cover it once or twice when it was close to freezing in January, and I was afraid it was going to die, but it seems to be thriving. (For anyone who missed the saga, the short version is that I grew this little tree from a seed, it does not grow fruit, and it almost died last summer after a pretty severe and long lasting heat wave. I was able to revive it, and it lives behind the net for now because we have asshole squirrels that were eating the little shoots when they were first showing themselves.)
How about you? Do you prefer Daylight Saving or Standard time? Do you like memoirs? Are you finding a balance between existential angst and total denial? (I’m working on it…)
39 Comments
PocoBrat
Umm… What do you mean “Do you prefer Daylight Saving or Standard time?” Is there anyone who prefers DST?! 😀
I’m so happy to see your avocado tree growing so strong and prefer your happy koi to the grumpy medieval fishies. Those medieval illustrations are such a hoot! I’m surprised they didn’t make the fish a penis. I’m thinking of all those medieval penis trees and things!
You write so many postcards, J! are you used to it, or do your fingers cramp up?!
J
California passed a resolution a few years ago that would allow us to stay on Standard Time all year and not go back and forth, but of course that requires approval of Congress, so nothing has happened. But people kind of flipped out when they found out that it would keep us on ST and not DST. “I LIKE MY LIGHT EVENINGS!!!” They say. Sigh. So yeah, I think there are people who like DST, once the initial shock of the change wears off.
I also am thrilled to see my avocado coming back so well. I sent a picture to my cousin yesterday, she is a Master Gardner who lives in SoCal, and talked me through how to bring it back.
I have arthritis in my hands, so writing too many postcards would indeed cramp them up. But I just do a few at a time, then when I have 10 done I mail them. It only takes a couple of hours including breaks, I do them mostly while waiting for processes to run at work or something.
PocoBrat
I didn’t know about your arthritis… this is extra impressive, J!
And I’m germinating the ambition to grow an avocado plant from seed now.
J
I have rheumatoid arthritis, which sometimes makes my hands hurt, and then some regular arthritis in there to make things fun. But I never push it to my hands cramping or hurting.
Go for it with the avocado, it will have to be a house plant for you!
Nicole MacPherson
Oh I fucking HATE time change. Just PICK A GODDAMN TIME AND STICK TO IT. I especially dislike DST. I just listened to a podcast (Wirecutter) about how it really impacts our health. And the next person who says “it’s for the farmers” I will murder, I swear to god, Julie, I will murder that person. I AM IN NO MOOD FOR THIS NONSENSE. Farmers are the last people to want the goddamn CLOCKS CHANGED THEY WORK WITH THE SUN. I could scream for hours but you know what, it’s time to go do some yoga and, reading back what I wrote, it’s not a minute too soon!
J
LOL Nicole, please, tell us how you really feel?
PocoBrat
And this is our usually zen Nicole, LOLOL
Hugs to you, Nicole!
J
I KNOW!
AC
I like the evening light. Soon the days will be long enough that the mornings will be light again. I think I am looking forward to the time change if it will mean that I sleep in later, according to the clock, at least. OTOH, I will probably be back to very early mornings in no time flat. Such is my life. ?
J
AC, yeah, I was thinking about my early mornings after I wrote this post, and you’re right, in a month it will be back to walkable again. If they’re going to switch, then, I wish they would wait until Easter. And gosh, the sun would come up EARLY if we stayed on Standard Time, wouldn’t it?
Around this time of year, I always hear stories on NPR about when we did try to abolish the time change and stick with one time (I think they decided to go with DST) and people FLIPPED OUT because it was so dark in the winter mornings, so they went back to changing it back and forth. Sigh.
AC
I can remember when I was ambitious enough to try to photograph sunrise in summer, and I had to get up and out very very early.
J
LOL, I can only imagine as far north as you are (compared to here…where it would still be before 6)
nance
I cannot believe that, in the 21st century, we do something as primitive and archaic as moving the clocks back and forth, back and forth like some sort of tribal ritual. (I also can’t believe that we are still doing something as Neanderthal as pooping, either, in a specially designed vessel–why isn’t there a pill or something that simply takes care of all that?–but that’s beside the point.)
My cats get really screwed up and to keep their feeding schedule normal is a pain.
I’m so happy about your avocado tree! It has really come through its many struggles. Hooray! I looked out over our back yard, which we redid last fall–we tore out all the landscaping, stone paths, etc. and just went back to grass–and some clumps of daffodils have survived. They’re muscling through the grass now, about four inches. Yay!
J
Yay about your daffodils! Such a cheery sight!
LOL on your poop pills. I can imagine this world, and the majority of us would just take them, but the anti-vaccination crowd (both left and right wing folks) would declare that the pills were not natural and would continue to poop. But of course we wouldn’t have toilets anymore, so they would have to build outhouses, and somehow it would leach into our water supply and it would be a whole THING.
Pets and DST. Sigh. Yeah, both Gen and Mulder loved the spring time change (early dinner!!!!) but hated the fall one (WHERE’S MY DINNER???) As I said to John in my reply to his comment, I guess we tried to stay on one time and people freaked the hell out. Sigh.
NGS
I do not like the term glimmer. I do not know why, but whenever I hear it, it just gives me full body chills in a bad way. What is wrong with me? No one will ever know.
I am NOT happy about the time change. It’s barely light when I walk Hannah in the morning now and it’s going to go right back to PITCH BLACK and I hate it. I am currently stomping my foot. Because I am an overgrown toddler. But…maybe I won’t feel like 7:30 is the end of the day? Maybe I will be more productive in the evenings?
Those bears, though. They do look like they’re about to go overtturn trash cans and smoke some weed behind the middle school. What a gang!
J
I’m LOL at you disliking the word ‘glimmer’. I remember when the WORDLE was ‘MOIST’ and the internet lost its shit because people hate that word so much. HA!
We’ve been considering adding an after dinner walk into our day, and lighter evenings will help with that. BUT WE WOULD HAVE GOTTEN THERE ANYWAY is what I’m saying. I’m sorry about your pitch black morning walks. I feel you, I dislike going out in the dark too.
Those bears are UP TO NO GOOD, that’s for sure.
Margaret
Like you I prefer morning light so I like Standard time better. I’m far enough north that it’s plenty light in the evening anyway without DST! I’m happy about “Flow!” John and I saw that in the theater and enjoyed it. I need to do more protesting–good trouble, right?
J
Yes, Good trouble! Which reminds me, I need to buy stamps when I go out to run errands today.
Jenny
I was going to start screaming angrily about DST, but I see Nicole has already done it for me. I would love to know WHO loves getting up and running/walking/going to school/work in the pitch dark. WHO.
Anyway… (deep, calming breaths)- glimmers! I love it. Those postcards are cute! As long as you don’t send them to anyone in Alaska or Hawaii, I think you’re fine.
Love the gang of bears!
J
Yeah, if there’s ever a campagne in AK or HI, I will definitely need new post cards!
Noemi
I really like that line from the interview about glimmers and grounding yourself so you can face hardship without being sucked in. Thank you for sharing that. I needed it.
And oh my those bears just lumbering down that dock like the own the place. That made me smile.
I am also dreading DST. I used to LOVE it but now I don’t. I have a hard time falling asleep when it’s light so late. It makes my already crappy sleep even worse and that is the last thing I need. I also wish we could stay on standard time all year, and if 20yo me could hear that she’s assume I’d been body snatched. But it’s true. I’m dreading it but it’s coming that there is nothing we can do about it.
J
You know what? I vaguely remember liking it too, in my youth. I also remember NOT liking the sun being up so late when I lived in San Francisco, because I lived in one of those flats where there was a big empty lot behind all of the buildings, so the sound REALLY carried, and people would be outside in their yards yakking it up, but I had to get up at 4:30 or 5:00 to get to work by 6am, so I went to bed pretty early. Now though, like you, my sleep isn’t as good as it once was. Bah!
Lisa’s Yarns
I hate the time change so much, especially with young children! I don’t really care whether we stay on standard time or daylight savings time. I just don’t want to swing back-and-forth! I’ll have a double whammy of the time change followed by traveling to eastern standard time so it’s going to feel like two hours earlier!
I’m so glad that your avocado tree is doing better!
J
Yeah, I remember it being worse when my daughter was young. Now that she’s an adult, we all just complain about it together.
Ernie
The toddlers /babies I sit for will ALL be messed up next week, so that’ll be fun. A room full of cranky confused babies and toys is my version of . . . What? Dealing with an audit at work or something?
Memoirs are one of , if not my favorite genre. We are reading Ina Garten’s book for book club in the fall, I think. I’ll prob read it this summer when I get thru more books than my usual. I’ve heard great things about it. Fun fact: I had never heard of her until Kari mentioned her on her blog and then the next week her book popped up on our book list. Apparently, when I’m not watching my kids’ basketball games, Babysitting, and making food or visiting the grocery store- I live under a rock.
I’m disgusted with the political theatrics and nonsense, but I am one who believes it will work out. Eventually. And one day we will look back on these days and be glad they are over, but realize that not as many bad things happened as initially thought. Fingers crossed.
Love your postcards and your postcards sending efforts. The bears do look like thugs out to mess with someone’s boat.
J
I really hope you are right about the politics not ending up as bad as we fear! I mean, our fears are mostly the worst case scenario, right? So yes, let’s hope THAT doesn’t happen. Hoping our checks and balances do what they’re supposed to do.
San
I guess I don’t get as riled up about DST as other people but it does make things confusing because not everyone is doing it (and not at the same time – like, Germany changes clocks three weeks later than CA. Why??). I would totally be ok to stay on ST and be done with it all.
I love the cards that you ordered from Etsy but I also want to know where AK and HI are. It’s not a complete map. What are you writing these postcards for right now? Local elections?
J
I suspect that the US used to change our clocks at the same time as other countries, but it changed a while ago…mid 90s? Early 2000? I don’t rememeber. It’s to save energy I think, but it sucks. If it were a little later, it wouldn’t be so stupid dark in the mornings.
Regarding the postcards, yes, local elections that matter nationally. Like in Wisconsin, it’s a spot on their State Supreme Court, which has a 1 person Democratic majority right now. If they lose that majority, it can affect election maps and so on, which of course can affect national politics. In Pennsylvania, it’s a Representative to the State House, which again has a very small majority that they are trying to keep.
Kyria @ Travel Spot
I prefer more light in the morning rather than the evening for sure but I don’t think I am as affected by the time change as you and Nicole are. I have a teacher friend who always said that the kids were always hard to handle on the first few days after the change too. Get this though, did you know that Europe has a different time for changing the clock? It is on the 30th, which means that I have to remember that now you guys are only 8 hours behind me instead of 9, until the 30th. Also I am in a more western part of the zone now, and it already does not get light until about 7:15/7:30, so now it will be after 8 am.
Is that bear photo recent? And if so, why are they out and about this early? Shouldn’t they still be sleeping? I guess it is March (I was thinking it was February). Also your avocado looks SO MUCH BETTER. Wow. Where I am now I went for a run in the hills and there are avocados for days. Of course, they are all just sprigs, no fruit, which is sad, as I would like to be here when they are ripe as I am sure that would mean VERY cheap avocados, which I would love. Next year I will have to plan my travels based on fruit ripeness seasons/locations! 🙂
J
Kyria, I have read that we used to change our clocks at the same time as Europe (or at least closer) but we changed it in 2007 for some reason…probably to save energy?
I don’t know whether this is true, but I have heard that avocados do not ripen on the tree, they have to be picked first. But you would have to wait until they are fully grown, right? Thank you for your kind words about my avocado tree. I’m so happy to see it thriving!
J
Regarding the bears, I have no idea whether the picture is recent, it was reposted on FB. However, I did check the Sitka Bear Report and there are current bear sightings. Someone commented that hungry bears don’t hibernate, not sure whether that’s the issue or not. Or if they’ve had a mild winter?
Ally Bean
Commenting here on the first morning of DST. Bear with me as I try to compose a thoughtful comment. I’m happy to read your assessment of Ina’s memoir. I loved her TV show, would love to know more about her.
J
Ally, I hope you give it a try! If we were neighbors I would loan it to you once I’m finished. I’m nearing the end.
Diane
I don’t mind the time change. It’s always kind of a bear the first few days, but then the light in the evening is nice. My husband, who grew up in Indiana where they didn’t used to change time, said the first time he lived somewhere with a time change, he gleefully went around changing all his clocks and was so excited about it. And i do agree, there is something I really like about going around and changing the clocks.
I did watch the Oscars last week. I was mildy entertained, but what’s with Kieran Culkin’s speech publicly reminding his wife that she said they could have more kids if he won an Oscar?!?!?! That was just so ick for me. I was excited for Paul Tazewell winning for Wicked costumes – I’ve never met him, but I’ve worked on shows with his costumes before, so it feels like a little bit of a connection there. I have Flow on my list of movies to watch the next time I get to pick the movie for family movie night.
Your post cards are lovely. I’ve been meaning to thank you for your postcard from the Cassatt exhibit. You are such a prolific post-carder and I’m so touched that I was included in your mails.
J
I’m glad SOMEONE likes the time change! Enjoy it to your heart’s content.
I hope you enjoy Flow, it was such a great movie. Quiet.
Stephany
I like DST more than ST, but only because I really love that it stays light longer in the evenings. However, I’d happily STAY on ST. The going back and forth is what trips me up. I think both options have their merit: ST means lighter mornings but darker evenings; DST means darker mornings but lighter evenings. As someone who hates driving in the dark, give me DST please!
I wish there was an easy way to do away with the switching back and forth, but I know it’s so much more complicated than just staying on ST or DST, unfortunately.
J
I like DST also, once we get past the dark mornings phase. The sun comes up early enough in the midst of summer already, so yeah, it would be worse if we stayed on Standard. If I had to choose one and stay on it, I would choose to stay on Standard all year. I dislike the switching back and forth. Blah!
Tobia | craftaliciousme
Oh these postcards look cute – but it would also annoy me a lot that states are missing.
I am in awe about your avocado tree. I have three seeds here that I more or less dumped in water hoping for soemthing to happen. I should probably read up on how to really grow an avocado tree.
J
I’ve had mixed luck with growing them…some just get slimy, others will sprout. You have to put the right side down in the water, and maybe there is even a time of year when you will have better luck. I’m not sure.